The poem “Those Winter Sundays” by Robert Hayden is devoted to the relationships between parents and children, specifically, between the author and his father. The poem consists of three stanzas that are not rhymed. The first stanza includes five lines, the second does four, and the fifth one does five. The author reflects on his relationship with his father and finally acknowledges the bond that existed between them.
The poem illustrates the complexity of the relationship that is between the son and the father, and it is possible to see that the author did not realize the scale of the sacrifice his father made for him. The parental love is shown by not words but by actions, and the child does not understand it, which makes him regret it in the future. The use of such metaphor as hearing cold splintering, breaking, and epithet the blue-black cold makes the audience associate the cold in father-son relationships with the cold of an early winter morning (Hayden, n.d.). These devices symbolize the author’s desire to break the ice between his father and him the way his father broke the cold in their house on Sunday mornings.
The poem explores the complexity of father-son relationships and different means of expressing love and affection in them. Parental love is not always manifested in words because some people do not know how to express it, but it consists of small daily actions which make children feel comfortable. The meaning of the poem is constructed through the image of a father who, being busy at work on weekdays, found time to warm the house and polish his son’s shoes. It was the manifestation of love he felt towards his son, but the latter did not understand it when he was a child and only realized it years later.
Reference
Hayden, R. (n.d.). Those winter Sundays. Poetry Foundation. Web.